(Sports)Roundup: Australia eyes success as nations converge for Asian Cup

As Asia converges on Australian shores for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, the pressure of expectancy weighs heavily on the shoulders of the Socceroos.

Favorites for the first ever Asian Cup held within Australia, Ange Postecoglou's side will be forced to defeat the likes of reigning champions Japan and rising Arab nations Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as potential surprise packets South Korea and China, on their way to a maiden international trophy.

While many have suggested boisterous home crowds along the east coast of Australia will be advantageous for the Socceroos, the hope of a proud sporting nation to continue a rich history of success may just prove another hurdle to overcome.

For the best part of 12 months, Postecoglou has enjoyed an environment free of pressure within the Australian camp.

Ushering out the golden generation that famously graced the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the new Socceroos manager brought several fresh faces to Brazil in 2014 in the hope of finding a new breed of Australian footballing talent.

The result was impressive, with prospective youngsters like Mathew Leckie, Ben Halloran and Jason Davidson unearthed in the South American conditions. However, results did not follow, with Australia losing all three group matches to Chile, the Netherlands and Spain to crash out of the competition without a point.

Back home, the World Cup was seen as a rebuilding exercise and the results were excused. But on home shores at the Asian Cup, an expectant footballing public will not accept similar scorelines.

Through the success of the A-League, Australian football has grown in leaps and bounds over the last decade. Now, all that remains for the Socceroos to achieve is that elusive piece of silverware.

Having come so close in 2011, losing to Japan in extra time in the final, Australia yearns for vengeance.

With a squad featuring players in the twilight of their careers, such as Tim Cahill and Mark Bresciano, combined with established European stars like Mile Jedinak and Robbie Kruse, and freshened by up-and-coming youngsters like Mat Ryan and Massimo Luongo, the Socceroos seem to finally have the balance they lacked in Brazil.

However, given they enter the Asian Cup ranked 100th in the world by FIFA and 10th in Asia by the AFC, their position as pre- tournament favorites appears a flimsy tag.

Friendlies in the lead-up to the Asian Cup have highlighted Australia's long-term deficiencies in front of goal. From October onwards, the side scored just once in three matches against the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Japan, the type of opposition the Socceroos are likely to face over the next month.

The scorer of that goal was 35-year-old Cahill, a man who has consistently produced on the big stage for Australia. But the Socceroos' reliance on the veteran forward remains too high for a side that harbors realistic ambitions of winning the tournament.

A-League prospects Nathan Burns and Tomi Juric are the only other out-and-out strikers chosen in Postecoglou's 23-man squad. But whether they can help share the brunt of responsibility remains to be seen.

Australia's chances of securing success are somewhat strengthened by recent underwhelming performances from Asian countries. Following the continent's failure at the 2014 World Cup, in which none of the five competing Asian nations progressed from the group stages, the Asian Cup remains an even field.

Japan is the competition's most successful country and will again arrive in Australia looking to hold aloft the Asian Cup trophy, for a record fifth time.

Boasting a potent attacking team featuring the likes of Keisuke Honda, Shinji Kagawa and Shinji Okazaki, Japan have been drawn into a favourable group alongside Jordan, Iraq and Palestine.

As the highest ranked Asian team going into the tournament, Iran will be looking to replicate their success throughout the 1960s and 70s, where they became the first and only side to win three straight Asian Cup crowns.

With strong pre-tournament form and following a World Cup where they narrowly missed out on qualification from the group stages, they will rely heavily on the attacking threat of Ashkan Dejagah, Reza Ghoochannejhad and Karim Ansarifard.

Drawn into Group A alongside hosts Australia, there is a chance that South Korea could prove the dark horses of the tournament. Following an overhaul of the squad after a dismal failure at the World Cup, South Korea are now led by the impressive talents of Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Son Heung-Min.

Their match against Australia, in Brisbane on January 17, looms as a defining fixture within the Asian Cup to see who qualifies on top of Group A.

Consistently on the verge of translating recent sporting success at Olympic level onto the football field, China also has the ability to surprise many on Australian shores.

However, the team managed by Frenchman Alain Perrin and featuring a purely domestic-based squad, will be forced to navigate a tricky group that consists of Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The Asian Cup could also represent a changing of the guard, with several Arab nations hoping to taste success for the first time.

Qatar's Khalfan Ibrahim, the United Arab Emirates' Omar Abdulrahman and Saudi Arabia's Nasser Al-Shamrani are the new-look stars of the region, which will be looking to shine in Australia.

Uzbekistan, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Oman and Qatar have all jumped into FIFA's top 100 recently, proving it's a region ready to explode on the football scene.

Qatar, in particular, will have plenty to prove on an international stage ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

But it's Australia who will have the pressure of expectancy to deal with this January. Their first challenge, Kuwait in front of a sell-out crowd in Melbourne on Friday night. Endi